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T O P I C R E V I E W

Robert Pearlman

From the Los Angeles Times via the Houston Chronicle's website:

After a 30-year hiatus, the United States is going to the moon again. Only this time, the government will have nothing to do with it.

San Diego-based TransOrbital Inc. came one step closer to a planned moon mission when it signed a $20 million contract this week with the Russian space company Kosmotras for a test flight to be launched from the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan that will put a satellite into Earth orbit on Dec. 20.

TransOrbital President Dennis Laurie said the moonshot, scheduled for next October, will cost about $40 million.

The point of the mission? Profit. TransOrbital is selling space aboard the vehicle -- not for people but for personal items such as business cards, photos or personal messages (at $2,500 a gram).

What do collectors think of this? If it was a round trip, this would be a no-brainer -- every collector and their brother would want to have their memorabilia flown to the Moon and back. But a one way trip?

Would you pay $2500 to have a gram of your goods delivered (smashed) into the Moon's surface?

NC Apollo Fan

Not personally, no.

Jonathan

Gordon Reade

I would. You can count me in.

P.S. I just paid $100.00 to have my name placed on a wall at the new Air & Space Museum at Dullus Airport. Why wouldn't I pay for this as well?

[This message has been edited by Gordon Reade (edited November 29, 2002).]

John K. Rochester

.. I'd rather not send more garbage to the moon..

rjurek349

No -- I would not pay that much for a gram of stuff to just get smashed. What's the point? You can send your name for free to Mars with NASA and get a printout certificate. Worth about as much as a trip to the moon as this, it seems to me, as all you'll have left to show for it as well will be some cert. For $2,500, you can get yourself a decent piece of flown memorabilia from Apollo, and weighing in at more than a gram. From a practical collector's point of view, it just doesn't make sense to me.

CPIA

I agree with Jonathan.

Why send something to crash into the Moon as opposed to returned to the owner. Especially at $2,500 per gram.

You can buy a pretty good Moon flown artifact for that price per gram.

Larry

Rizz

I'm with you on that one Larry.

mensax

How many grams are there in a mother-in-law? ;)

Noah

Robonaut

If I cannot have it back? I join the no's. I agree with rjurek349. I would rather buy something to add to my collection.

But, each to their own.

Best wishes

Rob Wood

CPIA

mensax said, "How many grams are there in a mother-in-law?

Noah,

I don't know. Yet.

Larry

[This message has been edited by CPIA (edited November 29, 2002).]

BigWaveDave

Changing the subject to "good" things on the moon, have Gene Shoemakers ashes been "delivered" to the moon's surface yet? If so where did they "land"?

Ohh... and for $2.500 .... I opt for the Neil Armstrong autograph and a trip to Maui .Real Big Waves! Dave